Movie Review: ‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’

Review by Lauryn Angel

I am one of the only people I know who thought Ghostbusters: Afterlife was just okay; everyone else seems to have loved it. But as an Egon-stan and a fan of both Paul Rudd and Carrie Coon, I think I just expected too much from it, leaving me ultimately disappointed. So I went into Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire with low expectations, and maybe that did the trick, because not only did I thoroughly enjoy it, I think it may be the best in the franchise after the original Ghostbusters in 1984 (which 10-year-old me was obsessed with when it came out).

The nostalgia hit harder for me with this one, I think, as our first shot of the newer Ghostbusters joins them in mid-chase in the streets of New York City, pursuing the Hell’s Kitchen sewer dragon in the iconic Ecto-1. There are quips and bickering, and not only does the suicide door get put into use, we get to see some new toys in action.

Whether you’re a fan of the original Ghostbusters or the new batch from Afterlife, both groups get plenty of screen time, as defeating the big bad in this installment is going to need all hands on deck. In fact, the four original Ghostbusters ( played by Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, Ernie Hudson, and Annie Potts) and the six new ones (played by Coon, Rudd, Mckenna Grace, Finn Wolfhard, Celeste O’Connor and Logan Kim) aren’t even enough. They enlist help from paranormal researcher Lars Pinfield (James Acaster), occult librarian Dr. Hubert Wartziki (Patton Oswalt), and Nadeem (Kumail Nanijani), whose contribution is better kept unsaid until you’ve seen the movie.

There are new ghosts, as well as cameos from some of the originals. And the mini Stay-Puft marshmallow minions are back, torturing each other in hilarious ways.

The movie is fun, as long as you don’t question too much. There are several inconsistencies, including a brass firepole that gets melted down in one scene, but is intact a few scenes later. Some characters don’t develop at all, such as Wolfhard’s Trevor, who seems to be there to bait Slimer and whine about not getting to drive the Ectomobile, even though he’s 18. Others get more satisfying character arcs – Mckenna Grace’s Phoebe develops a (maybe romantic?) relationship with a ghost named Melody (Emily Alyn Lind). In many ways, Phoebe is the protagonist of this movie, and Grace is so good in the role that I forgot it was her.

If you’re a fan of the Ghostbusters franchise, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it as much as I did. There isn’t a dull moment and there are laughs aplenty. Just don’t think too hard about how the plot fits together.